Red and White, Shinken Chartreuse Version
by Crystal Blue Montana
Summary: Even though they are miles apart, Kotoha gives Chiaki chocolate for Valentine's Day.  In response for White Day, Chiaki comes up with one of his out-of-the-box ideas.
1. RedRimmed Eyes

**Red and White - Shinken Chartreuse Version**

**Okay, enough of the angsty **_**Dogoon V**_** fics for now. I'm going back to some fluffy cuteness with Chiaki and Kotoha. Here, in another post Act-49 story, the couple celebrates Valentine's Day and White Day, despite their distance. For an explanation of how the Japanese celebrate Valentine's Day and White Day, please check out the intro to my fic "White Day Blues."**

**Those of you who have read my **_**Dogoon V**_** fic "A Date With Doji-chan" know that I got a bit carried away with the Shogo Suzuki crossover love; it continues here, but no dead ringers for Suzuki-kun in this story. That would just be _too_ off the wall.**

_**Samurai Sentai Shinkenger**_**, all characters, and references therein are the property of the Toei Corporation and TV Asahi. Chi Chai Monchan and Hello Kitty are the property of Sanrio Ltd. PlayStation 3 is the property of Sony Computer Entertainment. No infringement is intended or implied.**

**Chapter 1: Red-Rimmed Eyes**

Chiaki unlocked the door to his apartment and kicked off his tan skate shoes. "I'm home," he called to his roommate. He hung his keys on one of the hooks by the door and went to his room to drop off his messenger bag.

Chiaki's roommate, Kouta, wearing a blue pub worker's uniform, looked up from his PlayStation 3 game. "Welcome back. You got a package. It's on the kitchen counter."

"Thanks." Chiaki went to the kitchen and found a medium-sized box wrapped in white paper on the counter. His heartbeat accelerated when he noted the return address. "Oh wow. This is too cool." His fingers trembled as he tore the paper from the box. He lifted the lid on the box to find a large pink envelope sitting on top of a smaller box. Chiaki picked up the envelope and opened it to find a card with Chi Chai Monchan and Hello Kitty dancing on the front amidst floating hearts. Inside, the card read:

"Happy Valentine's Day, Chiaki. I hope you like the chocolates. _Onee-chan_ helped me out a lot with making them. I miss you and can't wait until the next time we can see each other again. I love you. Kotoha."

Chiaki removed the lid from the smaller box. Inside was an assortment of chocolates in different shapes. A few of the candies had tiny pockmarks from air bubbles, and the centerpiece of the box was a large chocolate heart on which was unevenly drizzled "Chiaki" in white chocolate. Chiaki smiled; it was the first time in his life that he had ever received _honmei-choco_, and he couldn't think of a better person to receive it from. He brought the box out to show Kouta. "Check it out! My girlfriend made me some chocolates for Valentine's Day!"

"I figured that that's what was in the box when the postman brought it and I saw that it came from Kyoto." Kouta set down his game controller and looked over at the box Chiaki showed him. "Pretty cool. No _honmei-choco_ for me today, but a few girls from some of my classes did give me some _giri-choco_."

"Yeah, I got some _giri-choco_ today, too. Oh, man, this is pretty sweet, no pun intended." Chiaki set the box of chocolates on the dining table and took out his Shodophone to snap a picture of it. "Have you ever gotten _honmei-choco_ before?"

Kouta answered, "Couple of times in the past. Unfortunately for the girls who gave it to me, I wasn't into them and I had to let them down easy. I mean, it was flattering, but I didn't want to string them along, you know?" He checked his watch. "Aw, man, time to go to work," he announced. He saved his game, switched off his PlayStation 3, picked up his backpack, and got up from the couch.

"Good luck," said Chiaki. "You think you guys will get some good business tonight, for Valentine's Day?"

"Are you kidding? We don't even really get much business, even on White Day. At least the place makes enough so that Master can keep the place afloat." Kouta went to pull on his black canvas slip-ons.

Chiaki went to the fridge, opened the door to see what there was to eat, and frowned. "Hmm. I probably should have gotten some groceries on the way home. Maybe I'll stop by Kame-chan later and grab a bite or something."

Kouta nodded. He hefted his backpack onto his shoulder, lifted his keys from the wall hook, and walked out the door. "See you later."

"Later." Chiaki shut the fridge door, then went back to the dining table to look at his _honmei-choco_ from Kotoha. He sat down at the table, drew his Shodophone from his pocket, and dialed a familiar number. When the person on the other end picked up, Chiaki purred, "Hi Kotoha."

Kotoha's voice was sunny upon hearing Chiaki's. "Hi Chiaki! Happy Valentine's Day. Did you get my package?"

"I did. Thank you." Chiaki admired the array of chocolates in front of him. "They're beautiful. And you made these?"

Kotoha mouthed "it's Chiaki" to Mitsuba before she retreated to her room for some privacy. "I did. It took a lot of trying, but I wanted them to be perfect for you."

"They look amazing," said Chiaki. He picked one piece out of the box and took a nibble. The extra creamy chocolate melted quickly on his tongue, its rich flavor thick and smooth. "Oh wow, and they taste as good as they look!" Chiaki set the piece back into its paper cup in the box and quickly licked melted chocolate from his fingers. "Thank you, Kotoha. Damn it, but I miss you so much."

"I miss you, too." Kotoha hugged _Kuroba-kuma_, the plush bear that that Chiaki had given her the day he went to Kyoto to confess his feelings to her. "I wish I could have gone to give you your present in person."

Chiaki smiled. "That would have been awesome, but I'm totally cool with this. I feel like the luckiest guy on Earth to have you as my girlfriend."

"Chiaki, that's so sweet." Kotoha felt tears filling her eyes. "I… I feel like _I'm_ the lucky one. You're so smart and cute, and you're so wonderful to me. I'm so lucky to have you as my boyfriend." Her voice quavered slightly on the last sentence.

Chiaki propped his chin up on his hand. "Aw, Kotoha, please don't cry," he sighed. He suddenly felt his heart breaking for not being able to hold Kotoha in his arms and wipe her tears away. Chiaki's own eyes began to get misty. "I…damn it, now you've got _me_ crying."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry."

"No, no, it's not your fault," reassured Chiaki.

I don't want to cry," Kotoha protested, wiping her eyes with a tissue.

Chiaki wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. "Me neither." He sniffed and looked around for something to blow his nose on.

"I just miss you a lot. I wish I could hold you right now."

"I know how you feel. I miss you so much it hurts sometimes." Chiaki closed his eyes. "But you know what? I'm always holding you. Whether we're with each other or miles apart, I'll always be holding you. Can you feel me holding you now?"

After a short pause, Kotoha answered in a whisper, "I can."

"Don't ever forget that. And I can feel you holding me."

Kotoha had to smile. "I'm sending my love to you through _Kuroba-kuma_."

Chiaki chuckled. "You are just so cute. Anyway, I'll try to come see you this coming weekend, okay? Until then, remember that I'm always holding you. Please don't cry anymore."

"Okay, I won't." Kotoha hugged _Kuroba-kuma_ more tightly than ever, imagining Chiaki's arms around her. "I love you, Chiaki."

"I love you, too, Kotoha." Chiaki sighed. "I don't want to hang up."

"Me neither," giggled Kotoha.

"Okay, on the count of three, we'll both hang up together. One… two… three." Chiaki could still hear Kotoha on the other end of the line. "You didn't hang up," he teased.

"Neither did you!" Kotoha pointed out.

"Okay, okay, let's do this again. I love you, Kotoha. I'll call you again later."

Kotoha nodded, as if Chiaki could see her do so all the way from Tokyo. "Okay. I love you, Chiaki."

"One… two… three." Chiaki winced as he disconnected the call. "Crap. I so did not want to do that," he sighed aloud. He looked at the box of chocolates that Kotoha had made for him, picked up the piece that he had taken a bite from, and finished it off, savoring its flavor and smoothness. He thought for a moment. _It_ would _have been awesome if she could have come to Tokyo to deliver the chocolates herself… hmmm… that gives me an idea_… Chiaki put the lid back on the _honmei-choco _and put the box in the refrigerator. After stepping back into his skate shoes, he grabbed his keys from the wall hook, and ran out the door.

**Chiaki's roommate here is based on Shogo Suzuki's bit part in the J-drama "Dosokai: Love Again Syndrome," which aired early in 2010. Kame-chan is the _izakaya_, or Japanese pub, where Kouta works. "Dosokai: Love Again Syndrome" is the property of TV Asahi.**

**For once, I'm drawing a little inspiration from my own life. Chiaki's "I'm always holding you" line comes directly from my boyfriend. Yes, he does actually say that to me. *cue "awww" track***

**Next chapter: It's White Day. What does Chiaki have planned? Oh, and Happy Valentine's Day to all!**


	2. White Lace and Promises

**Red and White – Shinken Chartreuse Version**

**So there was a little bit of angst in the last chapter; it's still nothing compared to what I've put poor Shouta through in my **_**Dogoon V**_** fics.**

**Here is Chiaki's gift to Kotoha for White Day. As is befitting him, he has thought somewhat outside the box on this, or at least I'd like to think he did.**

_**Samurai Sentai Shinkenger**_**, all characters, and references therein are the property of the Toei Corporation and TV Asahi. No infringement is intended or implied.**

**Chapter 2: White Lace and Promises**

Two weeks after Valentine's Day, Kotoha returned home from school to find Mitsuba motioning towards a large box on the coffee table. "This just came for you today. I think it's from Chiaki," said Mitsuba.

Kotoha looked at the return address on the box. "That's Chiaki's address, all right. I wonder what this is?" She carefully unwrapped the parcel, revealing a plain white box. She lifted the lid from the box. There was something wrapped in tissue paper inside, with an envelope marked "read me first!" on top. Kotoha picked up the envelope, opened it, and pulled out a folded sheet of paper. When she unfolded the paper, something went fluttering out onto the floor. Mitsuba went to pick up the item as Kotoha began to read the letter aloud, "Kotoha, I wanted to do something special for you for White Day. I sent this early so that everything would go like I hope it will. I want to see you then, so I got you a train ticket for you to come to Tokyo and I also got you a dress to wear when you come." Kotoha paused to unfurl the tissue paper from around the garment in the box and gasped when she found a white sleeveless dress with white lace trim, a flared knee-length skirt, and a yellow sash accented with a bow on one hip. "Oh, it's beautiful!" She held it up to herself. "What do you think, _Onee-chan_?"

Mitsuba's eyes were wide. "My goodness, that's a nice dress! Chiaki sure has nice taste."

Kotoha was about to lay the dress back into the box when she spied another box inside. This one was wrapped in white paper, with a note on it that read "Do not open!" She laid the dress back into the larger box, on top of the smaller one, and continued to read Chiaki's letter. "Please call me as soon as you get this so that we can make sure that we'll be able to do this with no problem. And that box under the dress, don't open it. Bring it with you when you come to Tokyo and I'll let you know what it is then.

"Remember, I'm always holding you. I know you're always holding me. I can't wait to see you again. I love you. Chiaki." Kotoha held the letter to her heart and looked at the object in Mitsuba's hands. "Is that the train ticket?"

Mitsuba nodded. She handed the ticket to Kotoha. "You should probably call Chiaki right now," she said.

Kotoha nodded. She continued to wonder what was in the mystery box as she took out her Shodophone to call Chiaki.

o-o-o-o-o

Kotoha stepped off the train, pulling her pale yellow wrap around her shoulders with one hand and tightening her grip on her duffel bag with the other. Mitsuba had lent her the bag because it clashed less with her new dress than her backpack did. Kotoha kept aware of her surroundings, her heart racing at both her nervousness at being alone at the train station for the moment and her excitement at getting to see Chiaki again. She heard someone calling her name and she looked around excitedly. When she saw Chiaki striding towards her, her breath caught in her throat and she nearly dropped the duffel bag.

Chiaki held a single red rose in his right hand. His bleached hair was still in its usual flipped style and his wallet chain still looped from his left front belt loop to his left back pocket, but instead of his usual vintage American surfer attire, he wore black dress pants, a matching sport jacket, black dress shoes, a white dress shirt, and a hunter green tie. It wasn't the first time Kotoha had ever seen Chiaki dressed up, but he had never looked more handsome to her than he did right then. Even though she was wearing high heeled shoes and carrying the duffel bag, Kotoha began to sprint towards him.

Chiaki had quickly picked Kotoha out of the travelers coming off the train, and he was so captivated by the sight of her in the white dress he had bought for her that he had to pinch himself to make sure he was actually seeing her. He began to run towards her almost as quickly as his heart was beating.

Kotoha dropped her bag and threw her arms around Chiaki as soon as he was within her reach. She closed her eyes and breathed in, savoring the scent of his body spray as she felt his arms pull her to him. "Chiaki," she sighed. She pulled back slightly to take in the sight of him in his suit. "Oh, you look so handsome!"

"You like it? I thought that since I wanted you to dress up for me, I should get dressed up for you, too. And you," said Chiaki, his voice husky as he looked her up and down, "look fantastic. You're so beautiful." He leaned forward and kissed her softly, ignoring the scandalized looks that some passersby were giving them. "Oh, here," he added, withdrawing his hand from behind her to present her with the rose he had brought. "Happy White Day."

"Oh wow," Kotoha breathed. Her eyes shone with love as she looked up at Chiaki. "Thank you."

Chiaki picked up Kotoha's duffel bag and held his free hand out to her. "Let's go to my place first," he said. "I want you to meet my roommate and then we'll get our day started."

Kotoha took Chiaki's hand, and together, they exited the train station to head for the bus stop.

o-o-o-o-o

"I'm home," called Chiaki as he unlocked the door of the apartment.

Kouta looked up from his books on the dining table. "Welcome back." He smiled at Kotoha as he stood up and bowed to her. "And you must be Kotoha. I'm Kouta. I've heard a lot about you from Chiaki."

Kotoha bowed to Kouta. "Nice to meet you, Kouta."

"So what do you two have planned for White Day?"

"We'll definitely be stopping by Kame-chan for dinner tonight," answered Chiaki, "but we're going to be just going around town until then, go see a few friends, go shopping. I just thought I'd bring her by here to meet you and see the apartment first."

"Gotcha. By the way, I'll be staying at my cousin's tonight, so the apartment's all yours."

Chiaki nodded. "Thanks," he said, noticing that Kotoha had turned fairly pink at knowing that Kouta had made plans that allowed her and Chiaki to be alone in the apartment. "Come on," he said to her, leading her further into the apartment. "You saw the kitchen and the living area. There's the bathroom, Kouta's room, and this," he said, opening a door on the right side of the hall, "is my room." Chiaki led Kotoha inside and shut the door behind them. He set down the duffel bag, took the rose from her, and laid it gently onto the bag. He slid his hands to the small of her back, drawing her up against him. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you, too," said Kotoha. Her hands clasped together behind Chiaki's neck.

Chiaki leaned forward and kissed Kotoha, tenderly at first, then more ardently, as the sensation of his lips meeting hers after several weeks apart, coupled with how lovely he found her in her new dress, soon lit a fire within him that gave a hint as to how much he had missed her. It took all his resolve to keep from walking the both of them over to his bed to lay them down onto it.

Kotoha pressed herself as close as she could to Chiaki. _Oh, how I missed this… how I missed you…_ Her hands pushed into Chiaki's hair, further tousling it. Her body trembled as she felt his tongue prod gently at her lower lip. She parted her lips slightly to let her tongue meet his. _Mmm, minty_. After what felt like hours of slow, sweet, yet sensual, kisses, they pulled away from each other, completely breathless. Kotoha hugged Chiaki tightly and sighed. "I'm so happy to be here with you."

Chiaki held fast to Kotoha as he panted. "I know, right? I'm so freakin' amped that you're here. So did you bring that box that I sent you?"

"I did," answered Kotoha. She broke from Chiaki's arms to carefully lay her rose onto his desk before bending down to open the duffel bag. She took out the box, which laid on top of everything else she had brought. "Here it is."

Chiaki led Kotoha over to his bed and motioned for her to sit. Sitting next to her, he declared, "Okay, now you can open it."

Kotoha carefully removed the paper from the mystery parcel and was surprised to see a familiar box in her lap. "This is the box of chocolates that I made you for Valentine's Day," she said, thoroughly confused.

"I know," said Chiaki. "You said that you wished you could've gotten to give it to me yourself, so I saved most of them so that you could do that." He spread his hands out wide.

Kotoha giggled. "Chiaki, you're so smart." She held the box out to him. "Happy Valentine's Day, kind of," she announced.

"Thank you." Chiaki leaned forward and pecked Kotoha on the lips. He opened the box, grinning. His heartbeat sped up because he knew exactly what was inside. "Oh, these are nice! Especially this one." He pointed at a small paper cup, just above the large chocolate heart in the middle of the box, that appeared different from all the others.

"Eh?" Kotoha took a closer look at the paper cup and her eyes widened in shock. Instead of a piece of chocolate, the paper cup contained a cotton ball. Two rings were nestled in the center of the cotton ball; one a medium-width silver band inset with a trillion cut yellow topaz, and the other a slender silver band with prongs bearing a princess cut, brilliant green tsavorite garnet.

His fingers trembling slightly, Chiaki picked the rings out of the cotton ball. He got up to set the box of chocolates on his desk before he sat next to Kotoha again, holding the rings in his right hand and taking her hand in his left. "Kotoha, when we started out as comrades under Takeru, I couldn't possibly have imagined the adventure that being Shinkengers would bring us." He looked down and bit his lip shyly before he continued, "I mean, Dad told me about all the samurai stuff, but he never mentioned anything about falling in love.

"I guess it didn't happen to him, but it sure as hell happened to me. I mean, I'm just totally in love with you, and I wouldn't have it any other way." Chiaki held up the ring with the tsavorite garnet. He chuckled nervously. "Kotoha… I'd, um, I'd be so stoked and really honored if you'd wear my promise ring."

Kotoha pressed her free hand to her mouth, and tears rolled freely down her face. Her heart felt like it had taken flight. "Oh, it's beautiful!" she managed to say. "Yes! Yes, Chiaki, I will." She watched as Chiaki took her right hand and slid the ring onto her ring finger.

Chiaki held up the ring with the topaz. "And I'm going to wear this ring. It's my promise to you that I'll always love you." He handed Kotoha the ring and held his right hand out to her so that she could put the ring onto his ring finger. Once the ring was in place, Chiaki gathered Kotoha into his arms and brushed the tears away from her face. "I love you." He closed in to kiss her deeply once more.

Kotoha felt like she and Chiaki were sitting together on a cloud as she reciprocated his kisses. Just getting to see him and be with him was more than enough of a White Day present for her, so everything that he had done for her had been much more than she would have ever thought to ask of him. When they parted once again, she smiled and looked at her right hand to admire her new ring. "It's perfect. Thank you," she breathed.

"I'm glad you like it."

"I love it. Not quite as much as I love you, but I love it." Kotoha's fingers toyed with the ends of Chiaki's hair.

Chiaki stood up, holding his hands out to Kotoha. "Come on; we've got places to go, people to see, and things to do."

Kotoha took Chiaki's hands and let him draw her up. "Where are we going?" she asked, adjusting her wrap.

Chiaki opened his bedroom door. "First stop, the Shiba house. I told Takeru you'd be in town. He says that Ryunosuke's coming, too, and they'll both have White Day presents for you."

"Oh, it'll be good to see _Tono-sama _and_ Ryu-san_ again." Kotoha giggled. "I wonder what they'd say about this?" she wondered, holding up her hand with Chiaki's promise ring on it. _And I wonder what_ Onee-chan _would say? Not that I would need her approval, but this is absolutely thrilling; I feel like I could burst!_

"Only one way to find out." Chiaki smiled as he let Kotoha past him into the hall. He took her hand in his. _Best. White Day. Ever. And it's just beginning..._

**All together now... awww... and Happy White Day to those of you who celebrate it!**


End file.
